Winter. It is cold, grey, rainy and sometimes snowy. The fog and the frost welcomes us in the morning, we, with the scraper in hand, ready to scrape the windshield and praying that the car can start once again... It is still dark and we know that when we return, it will still be dark... If for you, winter rhymes with depression or frustration, we invite you to read this article which will allow you, perhaps, to take another look at the dark season while waiting for the return of the beautiful days. Let's see what the natural cycles of the seasons have to say...
La roue des saisons, un cycle vertueux d'un éternel recommencement.
Disconnected from the land of our elders, we have lost the meaning and the thread of the seasons. This eternal restart invites us to live in harmony and synchronize with the environment. Letting go, little death, rebirth and expansion. Breathe in/out.
The seasons are the visible signs of natural breathing. This tireless back and forth between fullness and emptiness unconsciously leads us to follow this invisible dance, which is nevertheless well anchored in us, in our history, in our cells.
The Western way of life is no longer heaven and earth oriented. He looks straight ahead as one would aim at a target: speed, rapidity, profitability... Any notion of patience, slowness, just pace is forgotten. Only those who garden realize that each transformation process takes time. Beyond the need to eat better, the new gardeners are also in search of that famous back to the land and universal timing.
L'hiver, le temps du repos...
Winter by its very essence should be the quietest time of the year, the time to stay in your home, to let the dishes simmer, to give your household a soft glow. Winter is the time of rest. The work in the fields is over. The sap of the trees has returned to the roots in the depths of the earth. It isa suspended time where nothing happens.
Yet we are embroiled in spite of ourselves in the race of the end-of-year holidays, professional imperatives to finish before the new year, external solicitations that upset nour internal and personal ecosystem.
Un hiver mal vécu est un hiver mal compris
Winter is a complicated time for many people because they are partly disconnected from the natural rhythm of the seasons and their own cyclical nature. This makes it difficult for them to settle down, to accept doing nothing, to stay at home and above all,winter is the season that pushes us into our corners. It invites us to get in touch with our shadow areas, to use Jung's terms.
This dark period awakens all our old demons, deep anxieties and repressed emotions: abandonment, rejection, anger, loneliness, etc....
Winter is a little death. It allows for the exploration of our unconscious in order to release all that is no longer needed before rebirth in the spring.
Comment vivre en harmonie avec l'hiver
Prepare your cozy nest: plaid, rug, soft pillow, accent and subdued lighting, candle, incense, essential oil diffusion (without the presence of children or pets)
About preparing slow-cooked dishes: stew, tagine, curry, soup...
Cooking vegetables that promote anchoring: root vegetables (potato, sweet potato, parsnip, carrots...) and squash (butternut, pumpkin, squash...)
Consume local and seasonal fruits (apples, pears, kiwi). In some temperaments, citrus fruits in our countries will be inadvisable. Thinking about pies, compotes etc...
Think of spices that bring "fire": cinnamon, ginger, cloves, turmeric and aromatics: rosemary, bay leaf, thyme, oregano, sage...
Prepare infusions with dried wild or garden plants to combine pleasure, comfort and prevention of winter ailments
Slow down the pace: avoid sports in the evening, organize beforehand for Christmas shopping, take naps, sleep in or go to bed early, play board games as a family etc...
Get fresh air regularly in nature: forest, seaside, mountains, countryside etc...
The main rule is that of listening to your body's needs. Don't feel guilty about wanting to stay at home, in your den. It's the energy of the season that wants this!